New FM framework provides best practice on more strategic decision making

News & opinion

19 APR 2018

New FM framework provides best practice on more strategic decision making

Facility Management (FM), as a discipline, is about much more than managing buildings and services. It is critical to how every organisation or property occupier functions successfully as a real estate investment.

This is the crux of new guidance developed by RICS and the International Facility Management Association (IFMA) through their global collaboration.

The Strategic Facility Management Framework was launched in Dubai during the annual IFMA-RICS World Workplace Forum – Middle East. The framework, authored by Dave Wilson, FRICS, IFMA Fellow for the IFMA-RICS collaboration, sets out a more holistic approach to FM by providing strategic best practice for facility managers and practitioners around the world.

Because FM is about more than managing property assets, it is crucial to achieving maximum value from workplace and environmental benefits that improve productivity and protect employees and consumers.

The framework was jointly developed by RICS and IFMA with extensive global consultation among FM practitioners and industry leaders. It is also crucially aligned to existing standards set by the International Organization for Standardization (ISO), ensuring that the framework conforms to ISO consistent definitions and well as global best practice.

“The ability to achieve a competitive advantage through strategic FM has driven the industry’s rapid evolution in recent decades. The global FM community has coalesced as a result of unprecedented access to information, benchmarks and global standards, such as the new FM Management Systems Standard launched by ISO this week. As the engine of this community, the IFMA-RICS collaboration exists to provide the tools that allow FM professionals to lead strategic decision making,” said Tony Keane, IFMA President and CEO.

FM cannot be ring-fenced or limited to reflect operational activities. There are strong connections between FM and corporate real estate as well as asset management especially as it relates to property acquisition and disposal in both a strategic and operational sense. This framework sets out some of the key aspects of how and where facility managers can play a bigger, more valuable role in the corporate real estate decision-making process.

The landmark collaboration between IFMA and RICS is working to advance the global FM community by offering the most comprehensive catalogue of professional development and credentialing.